Meeting between Prime Minister Solberg and President Xi Jinping

Photo: Trond Viken/NFD

Prime Minster Erna Solberg today met Chinese President Xi Jinping in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. ‘I told President Xi how much I appreciated the warm reception we have been given during our visit, and the willingness shown to rebuild and further develop our bilateral relations,’ said Ms Solberg.

The Prime Minister was accompanied at the meeting by Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende and Minister of Trade and Industry Monica Mæland.

‘President Xi welcomed the prospect of increased cooperation with Norway in areas such as the Arctic, the environment and climate change. He was very pleased that China and Norway are now entering into cooperation on winter sports and the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022,’ said Ms Solberg.

President Xi agreed that establishing a political consultation mechanism is a good starting point for building wide-ranging and lasting relations, as is the resumption of negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement and the work in the Mixed Commission for Economy and Trade. The economies of Norway and China are in many ways complementary, which means that there are significant opportunities for expanding trade cooperation.

‘We also discussed international issues, such as efforts to combat climate change and the work to reach the UN Sustainable Development Goals,’ said Ms Solberg.

President Xi also briefed Prime Minister Solberg on his meeting with President Trump last week.

The meeting with President Xi marks the end of Ms Solberg’s visit to China, which has also included visits to the cities of Shanghai and Hangzhou.